Precious metals and gemstones have been a popular investment vehicle especially in Asian countries and on the part of those who are constantly moving from one country to another. Asians have a special fondness for them because precious metals and gemstones have enabled them to survive hard times most especially when the super power waged their wars on our shores. Another reason for this is the presence of many gold deposits and mines in our country.
PLATINUM Platinum is a grayish white metallic element that is soft, dense, very ductile and malleable with a high tensile strength. It has been used in jewelry, dentistry, Xray equipment, medical and surgical instruments and heating units. Due to its relative inactivity, platinum both as a free metal and alloyed with rhodium, is an almost indispensable material for such devices as magneto contacts, spark plug electrodes, radar parts, bomb sights, and computing devices. In the chemical industries, platinum and its alloys are also essential as catalysts and for other uses. Platinum is much more expensive than gold because of its rarity and extensive usage. Platinum is different from white gold because the latter is gold mixed with nickel, zinc and copper. Upon application of nitrate acid, platinum remains white while white gold turns yellow.
GOLD Gold is a metallic chemical element that is soft, malleable and ductile so that is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity. Gold is extracted by mining companies and is recovered from its contaminants by washing and filtering. If it is embedded in a vein of another mineral, it is mechanically recovered by power shovels, drilling and blasting. Gold was widely used as money and as a base for monetary systems. From the